by Scott M Gleeson, USA TODAY Sports

by Scott M Gleeson, USA TODAY Sports

With the new-look Lakers struggling, backup point guard Steve Blake lost his cool with 29.2 seconds left in the fourth quarter of Los Angeles' 105-95 loss to the Clippers last Friday.

Blake was seen swearing at a fan, who reportedly yelled, "you need to knock down those open shots." Blake snapped in response to the comment.

Now, he's paying for it. The NBA announced Tuesday that Blake had been fined $25,000 for using inappropriate language.

Blake started in that game with new starting point guard Steve Nash sitting out with an injury. He tallied eight points in two assists and shot 2-for-6 from the field.

Blake issued an apology Tuesday.

"It's an unfortunate misunderstanding and a heat-of-the-moment type of thing," Blake said Tuesday via ESPNLosAngeles.com. "It's one of those things I'm not proud of, the way I handled it, and I look forward to growing as a person and moving forward from it."

Blake maturely met with the fan, Lance Jackson, and his father, shoe mogul Steve Jackson, at the Lakers practice facility Tuesday. The Jacksons are longtime courtside season ticket holders. ESPNLosAngeles.com reports that the Jacksons' private gym at their home and some visiting NBA teams have actually conducted practice at the Jackson residence.

"I just let them know I was sorry for the way I acted," Blake said. "I didn't handle myself the way I want to and we were able to talk and hopefully can build a relationship off of that."

The 10-year veteran said his inappropriate reaction was a "spur of the moment bad decision" that derived from a frustrating start to a promising season.

"I'm feisty and can get into it on the court, but I've never taken it anywhere else," Blake said. "That's what I want to be known for, and they're great people and they didn't deserve to have that type of interaction with a player."